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Category: IwantSandy

Sandy has more to want

Sandy, the anthropomorphic electronic assistant from Portland-based Values of n, has been brushing up on her skill set. And now, she’s ready to share some more of those skills with you.

First, Sandy now lets you share the love with your friends so you can collaborate on appointments and to-dos, just by letting Sandy in on your email conversations.

Staying organized with friends, family, and coworkers is effortless when I work with them, too.

  • send shared reminders (the movie premiere Friday night)
  • add stuff to each other’s calendars (the dentist appointment)
  • share a to-do list (get those to-dos done together)

…and so much more. No more fussing with different organizing systems and calendar applications — just bring me into the conversation and I’ll take care of the rest.

Second, for you getting-things-done, New-Year’s-resolution types, Sandy has added goals. I mean, Sandy already helps you get where you’re supposed to go in terms of meeting and tasks. But now, she can help you get where you want to go in life, as well:

[W]hat better way to keep your eye on the prize than to write it down and keep it front-and-center as you go about your day.

To that end, we’ve carved out a spot in your Daily Digest to add a goal, guiding principle, or inspirational quote that’ll appear at the top of your Digest email each morning and alongside your appointments and to-dos on your “Today” page.

To meet Sandy, visit I Want Sandy. For more on Sandy’s development team, see Values of n.

Portland Start-up Index: Is your site there?

Given that I’m still happily digging out from an avalanche of new Twitter followers, I’m a little tardy on reporting the news.

So, a number of folks were kind enough to send me links to TechvibesPortland Start-up Index,” a list of Portland-based startups ranked by averaging their Alexa and Compete ratings.

According to the post, they chose the Rose City because:

Portland’s unique culture, combined with its proximity to Seattle and Silicon Valley make it fertile ground for start-ups.

The list features an apples and oranges combination of both companies and products (which, quite honestly, isn’t immediately obvious to people who don’t obsess over monitor this stuff as actively as I do). So, companies with multiple products—but only one Web site—like Earth Class Mail (#5) (which unfortunately moved to Seattle to attract funding) and Kryptiq (#20) are mixed in with site-specific products like Matt King‘s Knitmap (#8) and JanRain‘s Pibb (#10).

SplashCast tops the list, with I Want Sandy and MyOpenID rounding out the top three.

Values of n garnered two spots on the index with I Want Sandy and Stikkit (#6). As did JanRain, with MyOpenID and Pibb.

Some notable sites conspicuously absent from the list include Jive Software, Platial, Unthirsty, and AboutUs. But commenters are already noting some of these exclusions.

Techvibes plans to update the list on a regular basis. And, I’m looking forward to seeing a few more of you folks on it, the next time around. Please comment on the post (as a number of folks already have) to ensure that your product or site is listed.

(Hat tip to Mike Berkley, Adam DuVander, and Ben Parzybok)

I Want Sandy on Twitter

That’s a statement. Not a demand.

I Want Sandy, the anthropomorphic digital assistant (whom I always cover so I have the opportunity to use the word “anthropomorphic”) from Portland-based Values of n, has expanded her available inbound communications repertoire, as it were. She is now available to take your messages and requests as @s on Twitter.

Add her as a friend. She’ll add you. And the tweets will be flying in no time.

Sandy regularly polls Twitter asking for any new direct private messages meant for her eyes only. Each message you twitter is associated with your Twitter user name and account which Sandy checks against the Twitter user name she has on file for your iwantsandy.com account.

For more, see the I Want Sandy Twitter FAQ. Or see Rael Dornfest’s comment on the newest Twitter-based I Want Sandy features.

Irony: I want Sandy launches, and I need a reminder to cover it

Apparently, I need I want Sandy to remind me that I want Sandy has launched. (In my own defense, I follow both Sandy’s blog and the Values of n blog. But both were strangely silent about the release.) I just happened to stumble upon a Web Worker Daily post on I want Sandy as I was catching up on feeds.

So from the better late than never file…

Portland-based Values of n, makers of the popular Stikkit thinking sticky notes, have launched their latest application, I want Sandy, an anthropomorphoic personal assistant based on Stikkit technology.

Sandy was designed to work in conjunction with existing tools to help you remember what you need to do. Interacting with her is as easy as firing off some “Remind me…” emails.

Working with me is as simple as sending me email. There’s nothing to download, install, or configure. I live in your address book alongside everyone else you know and email.

You write to me at a special email address, get my attention with a few simple keywords, and I’ll take it from there.

When you tell me about appointments, to-dos, and contacts, my replies come with attachments you can click to add to your calendar, to-do list, or address book. You can even introduce me to your calendar so that everything you tell me shows up there automatically.

For more information or to sign up, visit Sandy at I want Sandy. Or see additional coverage from Mashable (sneakily hidden under the uri of “I want Sally”).